The Return of the Redhead
by Paris-eternellement
Summary: AU- post Judgement Day. Jenny is back to help out Vance clean up his messes. What will this mean for her relationship with one Special Agent. Vance is very OOC. Rated T to be safe.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This plot bunny came to me this morning while I was getting ready for work. First off this is an AU story and Vance is OOC, I decided maybe underneath it all maybe Vance is secretly nice. But that's not the plot bunny, read to find out what it is! And this is just setting the scene for what's to come this is a Jibbs story even though it doesn't seem like it yet! Disclaimer: I made the whole Italian mafia thing up, I'm not even sure mafias still exist and I don't mean anything negative against Italians.**

Gibbs, DiNozzo, and McGee walked in to the bullpen early Monday morning to find a redhead climbing the stairs toward MTAC. "Ooo look a red head Boss, just your type!" DiNozzo exclaimed. Gibbs decided it was best for him not to look and instead decided to head slap his senior agent. He then followed up with one of his infamous icy glares for good measure.

"Shutting up boss," Tony said, "and starting my work now."

Luckily the red head made it to the director's office without being recognized. She was convinced Tony was on to her when he made the red head comment but luckily Gibbs didn't bother to look. She opened the metal doors and sighed, she really missed her old office. Not bothering to knock, she found a tired looking Vance at his desk.

"Did Gibbs learn not to knock from you or did you learn from him?" Vance asked her with a smile. He was long past the days when he believed their relationship was inappropriate, now he believed she must've been a saint to withstand any form of a relationship with him.

"I actually believe in knocking thank you very much. But I was very close to being discovered by Jethro's team, so I moved quickly as possible. Seeing as I'm supposed to be dead, they might be confused to see me."

"Crap Jenny, what happened and why are they all early on a Monday morning?" Vance sighed, he could already tell today was not going to be a good day. He had called her in hopes she could help him out with the case that was plaguing NCIS and help him manage Gibbs. He thought by having her come early on a Monday morning he would avoid having her be seen. But he was wrong.

"They saw the back of my head and Tony made a comment that because I was a red head I was Jethro's type." It was nice to see that in the three years since her "death" some things hadn't changed. It had a calming effect on her, after three years of everything constantly changing; she could come back to headquarters and see that nothing had changed. Except for the director.

"Well isn't that his basic requirement?" Vance asked jokingly.

Jenny laughed, "Yes I suppose it is. Now what's going on? Or should I say what did Jethro do this time?" Vance laughed; she knew them all way to well. He had always secretly been jealous of the way she had connected with her agents when she was director. He didn't have that and it made his job a lot harder.

"You know all of us too well Jenny. And I'm sorry you had to fly out her to save my sorry butt. Why don't you go back to being director and I'll be assistant director again?" Vance had always thought he wanted to be the director of NCIS, until he actually got the job. Then he quickly realized it wasn't what he expected. He didn't mind the politics, but trying to clean up after other people's mistakes, sucking up to higher ups and trying to get his agency to give him the respect they gave Jenny wasn't fun at all.

Jenny smirked, "I do believe I told you the director's position wasn't all that it was cracked up to be. But how are we going to announce to the public that the former director of NCIS who has been supposedly dead for three years is now the director again?"

"I don't know, SecNav can come up with something. We'll say we had to cover up your life threatening sickness by making it look like you died, but then you got the treatment you needed survive. You took a few years off to recover and get back up to speed, but now you're ready to be back in charge. Then we can have somebody leak one of the messes I made and I'll have to resign and you can be director again."

"So you haven't put much thought into this have you Leon? And I don't mind helping you clean up your messes; I've made more than my share of them as well." It was understood she was referring to the frog incident, when revenge consumed her. She had been wrong to let that control her so much, to use NCIS for her personal agenda. But she cleaned up her messes with help from Vance and moved on. The past was the past and now she had to focus on helping Vance clean up the mess he made.

"I have because once SecNav finds out about this, I'm getting fired. I put an entire armed federal agency at risk and there's a good chance NCIS will be attacked by a dangerous Italian mafia!" Jenny's draw dropped, she had not expected this one. She thought putting Tony's life in danger was bad, she couldn't imagine doing that to the entire agency. There was no doubt that this was going to be difficult, mafias aren't exactly known for being cooperative. On top of that she had to do it while trying to not be seen by anybody who would recognize her. And if all that wasn't enough there was Jethro to deal with.

"First Jethro pisses off the Mexican drug cartel then you piss off the Italian mafia. Geez I can't trust you two! But we'll clean this up, but first things first what did Jethro do this time?" She really hoped he wasn't in any trouble, even after three years she thought of him constantly. She wasn't sure if Mike had told him that she had said she regretted leaving him in Paris, but she really hoped he had. She had always wanted to tell him how she felt and she had tried to when Carson stayed with her and she asked him to stay. But he walked away and she lost the courage to tell him.

"Special Agent Gibbs hasn't done anything," Vance clarified earning him a confused look from Jenny, "yet. But after he learns what I've done I know he'll become unmanageable and give me an earful. Which I deserve, but I don't want to hear it from him." There was no denying Gibbs was a good agent, but along with that he was hard to handle and stubborn as hell. He took too much pleasure in proving him wrong, especially when it came to using his gut in cases instead of evidence.

"Jethro won't ever let this go, I hope you know that. He's going to be very, very pissed at you and that man can hold a grudge like no one's business. I can give you tips on how to deal with him, but I'm not sure they'll work, he liked me," Jenny said with a smirk. Although she actually liked Vance, she knew many people at NCIS did not. Especially Gibbs, who resented him for taking the spot where Jenny should still be. A small part of her enjoyed the fact the agency liked her better, Vance and Jenny had a long history of competing against each other. But a bigger part of her wanted NCIS to be the best it could be, and for that reason she wished the agency liked Vance. And she knew they would, if they knew the real Vance. The real Vance was funny and kind, quick with a joke to lighten the mood, always ready to help. He cared deeply about those close to him: Jenny, his wife, and his kids. But in an attempt to gain respect at an agency that cared so deeply for their former director, he became egotistical, stern, and at times rude. This was all an act, because once he got home he became the Vance that Jenny and his family knew and loved. Vance was a brother figure to Jenny, they had a shared past of helping each other clean up their messes. SecNav had even taken to calling them brother and sister because of the way they fought. But they always made up and they always had each other's backs. No matter how much of a mess Vance made this time, she had planned on staying until every little part was cleaned up.

"Gibbs, hold a grudge? Never!" Vance said, sarcasm filling his voice.

"I know, he would never get mad at the director of NCIS!" Jenny said in a mocking tone.

"No he respects each director too much to ever fight them on what they say!"

"He always does what the director tells him to do!" They both laughed, thankful for the light, happy feeling the moment brought. It was moments like this that Jenny loved spending time with Vance.

"Okay so do you care to explain how you pissed off the Italian mafia, which I might add was a very stupid thing to do. I've heard they can hold worse grudges than Agent Gibbs," Jenny said with a smirk on her face.

"Ha, ha, ha Jennifer," Vance spat back, using her full name to annoy her. Only two people on this Earth were allowed to call her Jennifer, Ducky and her mother. She didn't like her full name and became annoyed when people, who knew it bugged her, like Vance, called her by it. She gave Vance her best glare and he couldn't help but wonder how big an effect Gibbs had on her.

"Cute Leon, shall I call your mother and make her come down here so you can tell me what happened? Or are you going to put on your big boy pants and tell me?" Jenny deadpanned.

"Well my family and I was visiting an old friend in Italy and we took Agent Keith, who is still extremely loyal to you, with us as a security detail, which he was not too happy about. Anyways when we got my friends-

"Wait," Jenny interrupted, "you have friends?" She laughed at her clever joke, but the look on Vance's face told her he didn't think she was funny.

"As I was saying when we got to my friend's apartment, Agent Keith got out to make sure the area was secure. While he was doing that he ran into some suspicious looking men who wanted to know what he was doing. He explained to them that he was securing the area for the director NCIS who was visiting a friend. They left and I went and met with my friend who told me he was in trouble with those guys we saw who just happen to be members of the Italian mafia. He had overheard them talking about their plan to rob his business so he reported to his boss and the police. When they went to execute the plan, the police caught them and arrested them. The men Agent Keith had seen were trying to get their revenge on him and were doing surveillance to figure out the best way to do it. The second night we were there they broke into his house late at night. I had been up, reading case files, when they came in and I was startled. They raised their guns and I raised mine, shots were fired and in the end I killed two of them, injured one, and the fifth one ran to report to the boss. I got grazed in the leg and arm and by that point everybody else had woken up and took me took me to the hospital. I had my friend escort my wife and kids back home to keep them safe and Agent Keith stayed with me. He had stepped out a minute when one of the mafia members slipped in and told me they would come take me, and NCIS down, because it would hurt more. I told him; mind you I was on pain killers, that I'd like to see him try. That he couldn't beat NCIS, basically I got him even madder. And now I'm left with a gigantic mess that's more than likely going to be reported to the media and put this agency in danger!" Vance sighed heavily, he had just said more in the past hour and half Jenny had been here than he did all last week.

"Well," Jenny began not really sure of what you said, "at least you were trying to protect your friend. You're talking about Gerard, right?" Vance nodded, pleased that she had remembered. "And it was the painkillers talking not you, which really doesn't help much because the mafia took it serious. We need a plan and agents to execute it. But first things first, does your family and Agent Keith's family have protection?"

"Agent Keith took his family and went to visit family in Connecticut. I instructed him not to come back until I instruct him to. Agent Joe has taken over as my security detail when I'm home and well watch over my family."

"And what about when you're here, they might try to take out your whole family when you're not around. Never underestimate criminal's ability to get their hands on the information they want. Your family needs to be constantly protected even if that means sending them away for a while. I know that's going to be hard, but you don't want them in harm's way." Vance nodded, he knew she was right but he hated to admit it. He didn't want to send his family away; they were his only source of comfort through these tough times. But he also knew he'd been worse off if something happened to them, if he had to wake up every morning to an empty house. And in that moment he made a decision no one in the family was going to like, he was sending them away until it was safe.

Jenny sighed; this was going to be quite interesting. Heads were going to roll when Jethro found out and there was no way Vance could control him. She might be able to, but since she was dead that wasn't going to fly. Then there was the matter of SecNav, who was going to be pissed. He had been pissed when he found out about her and The Frog and he was going to be more pissed about Vance and the mafia because he was putting NCIS in danger. She was glad she had decided to buy another house in Georgetown, because she was going to be here cleaning up this mess for a while.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: So I'm really excited about this story and so grateful for the reviews and alerts! Thanks you guys are all the best! **

Leon Vance was literally being dragged to MTAC by Jenny Shepard and he did not like it. But he went anyways knowing he would have to face the music at some point and know was as good as it was going to get. Once inside MTAC they were met by SecNav who was looking particularly unhappy. Jenny felt bad for Vance; he had to admit he had created a huge mess on a day when SecNav appeared to be in a very bad mood. At least she got to tell him she had created a big mess on a day when SecNav was in a good mood.

"Shepard, Vance," he said with a head nod.

"Hello sir, how are you today?" Jenny asked in a cheerful tone.

"That well depend solely on what you two have to tell me." Jenny gulped hard, one minute in and this was already not going well. Vance was lucky he helped her clean up the whole Frog ordeal, because if he hadn't she'd be in California with her family instead of nervously facing SecNav.

"Shepard you look nervous, you didn't do anything did you?" he asked jokingly. Although he had been incredibly pissed over the whole Frog ordeal when he first learned of it, he had gotten over it and now they joked about it from time to time.

Jenny took advantage of his suddenly cheerful mood, "sorry sir but I'm afraid it is me. I pissed off an arms dealer named The Bear and he's after me. Don't tell anyone, but I'm the run from him as well as The Tiger, The Lion, and The Monkey." Vance shook his head and smiled, she sure knew how to lighten the mood. He hoped one day he could look back on this mess and joke about it the way Jenny did with the Frog. Right now that seemed impossible, but maybe one day, if he lived, it would.

"Oh Shepard what am I going to do with you? You've got to stop pissing off those animal arm dealers!"

"They really are animals, but I'm sorry sir, I'll try," Jenny said with a laugh.

SecNav laughed, "good. Now would one you, preferably Vance like to explain what's going on? I'm going to go out on a limb and say Vance got himself into a mess and Jenny flew out her to help clean it up." Vance nodded his head before hanging his head low in shame.

"Dead on as usual, sir! How do you do it?"

"Shepard, care to explain why are you brown nosing me? This must be one hell of a mess." Jenny sighed; you can't blame a girl for trying. Things were looking so promising before when she made him laugh, now not so much.

"I put the entire agency in danger," Vance finally said. His head hung down, refusing to make eye contact with the other man. Jenny looked at SecNav for a sign of what he was thinking, but his face was expressionless.

"You can give him the silent treatment all you want, but our agency is in danger and we need a plan. You can even put him in time out while we discuss our options, but we need to talk now. I'm not going to sit here and let anyone threaten my, I mean your agents." She had forgotten how good it felt to be in control of things again, to be able to do something about the situation she was in. After her "death" she had been controlled by her illness, the treatment, and her overbearing mother. Even after she was treated her mother still tried to control her actions, SecNav and Vance told her where she could and couldn't go, and her nieces and nephews dictated what she would do when she babysat them. She wanted very much to rescue Ziva from Somalia, to help take down the Mexican drug cartel, to be there for Team Gibbs after Mike died, but instead she got reports from Vance on the happenings. It left her feeling hopeless and jealous of Vance. She certainly did not miss the paper work and brown nosing but she missed the interactions with the agents, the feeling after a successful op in MTAC, and even Gibbs barging into her office. Now she had a chance to help save the day and it felt good to be able to have a say, even if she might've gotten a little carried away.

"Just how bad is this mess?" SecNav asked. Usually it had to be pretty bad for Vance to call Jenny; he often tried to prove he was good at what he did. But when he found that he had brought Jenny into NCIS headquarters, risking her former agents seeing her, he knew he was dealing with something seriously wrong.

"It's pretty bad sir," Jenny answered.

"That's what I thought. Sheppard, you are not to leave MTAC and no techs are allowed to come in. Do some research, surf the web, do whatever you want, but do not leave MTAC. Vance make sure MTAC remains locked and no one gets in and then sit in your office until I get there and try not to screw anything up. I'll be there in an hour." Jenny was not sure what surprised her more: the fact that SecNav was coming to headquarters or the fact he had put Vance in, what sounded like time out.

"Yes sir, I'll see you then." Jenny answered, for once feeling no jealously towards Vance.

"Yes sir, I won't screw up." Vance responded, his voice filled with shame. And with that the feed was cut and the screen faded away. He gulped hard; SecNav was definitely going to kill him when he got here. He hoped for a clean shot to the head instead of painful torture.

"Jenny, if I don't make it tell my wife and kids I love them," he said in a dramatic fashion.

"Oh please Vance. I know you love drama, but SecNav is not going to kill you….yet." She said laughing as she watched Vance's facial expressions.

"Thanks for the support," he said in a bitterly sarcastic tone. The last thing he needed right now was her little jokes.

"Vance, this is a bad situation, you don't need me to remind you of that. I'm here risking my life to help you out and I don't mind that. But if I've learned anything from the past few years it's that you've got to make the best with what you have. Right now we have a bad situation so I'm trying to lighten the moment with jokes. But you're so uptight and serious right now that I want to hit you. Calm down, take a deep breath, and remind yourself that either we'll make everything okay or we'll go down trying. Now go to time out before he gets here and grounds you."

Vance walked out and locked the doors to MTAC leaving Jenny alone in the semi-dark room. She looked around, like the rest of NCIS, nothing had changed. She had so many memories of this room, of staring at the screen and waiting. This was the room where she had seen Jethro for the first time since Paris, where Gibbs had shared his coffee with her while discussing Ziva, where she had stood watching Tony's car get blown up and believing that Tony had died, and so many others. And with that she was back to thinking of Jethro and his team. Did Ziva still mix up her idioms? Does Tony still refer to McGee as probie? Has McGee realized that he really is a damn good agent? These were the things she wanted so badly to know, questions she had asked Vance, but he was unable to answer. Her train of thoughts was interrupted by the door opening and Vance entering.

"Ooo I'm telling SecNav you got out of time-out!" Jenny teased in a childish tone.

"I'll have you know that SecNav told me to come back here to check on you then sit in MTAC until he gets here. And from the tone of his voice, I can tell you he really, really does not want to be coming here. He's very, very pissed off." Vance sighed; he was not looking forward to the arrival of his boss. He had already written his resignation letter and it was sitting on his desk. He liked his job, but he was so certain he should be in control after this mess.

"Well I could've told you that, SecNav is not a fan of actually having to come here. And it's probably not going to be pretty when he gets here, but-." Jenny started to say before being cut off by an impatient Vance.

"That's really reassuring Jenny."

"You didn't let me finish! As I was saying we're going to get on his good side by showing him the research we did and the game plan. He'll be impressed, he likes when people take charge."

"That would work wonderfully…if we actually had those things!" Vance was getting more and more frustrated with the red head standing across from him.

"Ye of little faith, I have both of them right here," Jenny said holding up a folder labeled 'Operation clean up Vance's mess.' She had spent hours the night before researching the Italian mafia and trying to come up with a plan. After talking to some contacts she had in Italy, she determined quite a few things. First off, apparently the mafia wasn't stupid like they appear to be in movies, they were highly trained. As a matter of fact most were ex-government officials who had grudges against something or somebody. Second of all, they like to wait a long time to revenge or to do it slowly over a few months. Third of all, she was pretty certain they were screwed.

"Have I ever told you how much I love you?" Vance asked, feeling more and more at ease. He hadn't been sure at first, but now he knew, without a doubt calling Jenny had been an excellent idea. As he read through her research and plan he determined she spent hours attempting to save his ass.

"Well there was that drunken night at the bar…"

"We said we'd never speak of that again!" Vance exclaimed, embarrassed, even though they were alone in the room.

"Sorry I couldn't resist, you're just too funny when you're drunk. Anyways what do you think of the plan?"

"It's very good; I see you haven't lost hold of your agent skills."

"Of course not, I was trained by the best and I never forgot."

"I have to admit, Special Agent Gibbs is one of the best. He trains his team well and they do good work. They're like their own little family." Jenny felt a pang in her chest when he said the last part. She used to be part of that family, she was the mom. They were a dysfunctional family, but they cared deeply for each other. But she made a series of stupid choices and was forced to leave them behind. She knew they were doing okay without her, but she missed them.

"I hit a nerve there didn't I?" Due to his current situation, Vance hadn't put much thought into what he was saying. He only realized after seeing the look on her face that had been the wrong thing to say. He had been told Abby used to refer to her and Gibbs as the mommy and daddy of their family, but he had momentarily forgotten that.

"It's alright, I just miss them. We really were like a family, but I tore that all apart."

"You really loved Gibbs, didn't you?"

"Yes, I always have and I probably always will. It was stupid to leave him in Paris when I loved him and even stupider to tell him no off the job when I wanted so much to push him up against the wall and kiss him senseless. But no, I did both things, because I thought my job was more important. I tried to tell myself that he didn't tell me about Shannon and Kelly because he didn't love me, but I knew that wasn't the case. I tried to convince myself that if I was in a relationship with him, it would affect my job. I even tried convincing myself I never really knew him. But I knew these were all lies, I loved him so much it was pathetic. And now I'm "dead" and he'll never know how much I love him, because I'm so damn stubborn!"

"For someone who's supposed to be dead, you sure look alive to me," Gibbs said startling both Jenny and Vance. They'd been so absorbed in their conversation they hadn't noticed that he, his team, and SecNav were all in MTAC staring at her. Gibbs and his team couldn't believe their eyes; their former director who was supposed to be dead was standing in front of them, declaring her love for Gibbs.

"Um," Jenny stammered, "hello Special Agent Gibbs and team, how long have you been standing there?" Jenny was embarrassed, to say the least. She had wanted to tell Gibbs she loved him, but not like that.

"Long enough to here you declare your love for Gibbs," DiNozzo answered, expecting a head slap from Gibbs. But Gibbs, surprised him by doing nothing.

"Oh, well, um how are you all?" Jenny had been in a lot of awkward situations, but this one won hands down. The MCRT team was staring at her and she was sad to find that she could no longer read their expressions. An awkward silence broke out in the room until Abby, Ducky, and Palmer burst through the metal doors.

"MOMMMYYYYYY!" Abby screamed, running to Jenny at full force. She threw herself at the red head and wrapped her into a tight hug that almost knocked her over.

"Jennifer is that you?" Ducky asked, eyeing her curiously.

"Yes, Ducky it's me and I have a surprise for everyone, I'm not dead!" Everybody started asking questions at once, trying to make sense of everything. Gibbs looked around at the scene unfolding in front of him. Vance was sitting in the back with his head down, effectively tuning everything out. McGee and Palmer stood there awkwardly, not really knowing what to say. Neither had been close to Jenny, but they were glad she was still alive. Abby was talking a mile a minute while she, Ziva, and Tony asked Jenny a million questions. Ducky was watching the scene with a wide grin on his face. Jenny had been like a daughter to him and he had missed her dearly. He had many questions for her as well, but they could wait. SecNav stood away from the group, impatiently tapping his foot, but saying nothing.

"Jethro?

"Yeah Duck?"

"Are you alright, you seem distant?"

"Yeah I'm fine; I'm just trying to process this whole thing." Gibbs looked at Jenny, still not believing she was standing right in front of him. She looked different, but in a good way. Her hair was back to its normal color and was long again, like it had been in Paris. She was slightly tanned and looked much healthier than she had the last time he'd seen her. She was no longer stick thin, but a healthy weight. She wore a pair of khaki shorts with a yellow tank top and a white sweater on top. She had her aviator sunglasses perched on top of her hair and wore a heart necklace around her neck. She looked beautiful and happier than he had previously seen her. The Jenny in front of him was Jenny his partner, not Jenny the director. He thought of how great Paris was, until his thoughts were interrupted.

"Jennifer, dear why don't you tell us the whole story?" Ducky asked.

"I will Ducky, but first we have more important things to discuss. SecNav and I aren't here for a social visit, we're here because NCIS is in danger." The room went silent as everyone looked around for answers. Vance stood up and walked down the stairs to the front of MTAC where he joined SecNav and Jenny. All three were grave expressions and everyone looked to them nervously.

"Jenny has done research and says she has a plan sir. I've read over it and I think it sounds like the best course of action for what we know."

"Leon, why is the _former_ director of NCIS doing research and plans for _your_ mess?"

"Leon has been arranging security for those who might be in danger: his family, Agent Keith, and Agent Keith's family. He's done an excellent job and I believe they will all be safe. Here's the research and plan." Jenny handed the him the file, praying he would accept it. She wasn't quite sure why she still carried what he thought; he was no longer her boss. Gibbs and his team watched, confused as to what was going on. They wanted badly to know, but knew better than to ask.

"Nice work Jenny, this seems like a good plan. Do we have a timetable for this plan?"

"Well sir the 23rd is this Friday," Jenny said hoping the man would catch her drift. On the 23rd of each month she saw the doctor to see how her body was reacting to the treatment and medicine. In the three years since she'd been diagnosed, she'd done two rounds of treatment and took medicine daily. Her illness had been treatment two years ago, but she took the medicine and saw the doctor once a month to be sure. Once a year she underwent a touch-up treatment, as her doctor called it, to keep the illness away.

"Yes, I'll fly you back out Thursday night on my jet. When can you come back?" Team Gibbs exchanged even more confused looks. It was clear SecNav and Jenny had secrets.

"Thank you sir, I appreciate. I can fly back out that night if you like I'd like to start on this ASAP."

"For the thousandth time you don't need to call me sir, I'm not your boss anymore. However if Leon doesn't start acting like the director, you can have your job back." Leon grimaced, glad he had wrote up that resignation letter.

"Vance has been doing a good job under his current conditions. It's hard to try to clean up your mess knowing your boss is pissed and you've put others in danger. I was in his place four years ago and it was me you wanted to fire. But Vance and I cleaned up my mess and we'll clean up his as well, believe in us." Jenny's speech shocked everyone, especially Gibbs. He was under the impression Jenny hated the man, especially after he said their relationship was inappropriate. Now he was feeling a little betrayed, why had she run to Vance when she was in trouble? Why hadn't she gone to him?

"You have a good point Shepard, just make sure you act on those words. I know I couldn't get you to be director again even if I tried." Jenny and Vance chuckled, that was very true.

"We will sir, I promise. And you're right, it wasn't what I expected and I can't say I miss it all that much. I do miss the interaction with Team Gibbs though, but working in the LA office has been great. Do you have somebody to replace me out there while I deal with this? You don't want to piss off Hettie."

"I already sent an agent out there. I wouldn't want to piss off Hettie," Vance replied, hoping to prove he was doing something.

"Thank you Leon. Now Shepard, coordinate everything this week so you and Agent Gibbs can go undercover next week. You may not like it, but you'll deal with it, after all you just declared your love for him. I must get going but I'll be in touch." And with that, SecNav strode out of MTAC, content with his plan to get Jenny and Gibbs back together.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Thank you all for the reviews and alerts it means so much! Once I get writing, I can't stop so here's a double update for you! Everyone needs something happy on an icky Monday **

"What the hell is going on Jen? And why the hell are we going undercover?" Gibbs asked, annoyed by how little information he had at the moment. All he knew was that: A. NCIS was in danger because of Vance, B. Jenny and him were going undercover, and C. Jenny still loved him. It seemed that somehow all three were interconnected, but he wasn't sure of how yet. All he knew was he wanted answers and he wanted them now.

"Basically Vance pissed off the Italian mafia and they're bent on revenge. When I came up with the idea to have agents go undercover and piss off the mafia in order to gain intel and speed up the revenge process, as I heard it can take quite long."

"So you want us to risk our lives to clean up Vance's mess?" Although Gibbs and Vance had been getting along better lately, this had the potential to send them back to square one. He didn't trust Vance, and this was a good reason not to.

"You never had a problem going undercover with me and risking our lives before," Jenny said. She hadn't expected him to react like this, she thought he would like to go back undercover with her. But she had guessed wrong and it was looking like it would be one long mission.

"That was back when I thought I knew you, now I'm not so sure I do. How is it that for three years you've hidden your death?" Gibbs asked, anger rising in his voice.

"Agent Gibbs, calm down!" Vance said, sternly trying to control the inevitable fight that was coming, "let Jenny explain herself."

"Thank you Vance. Now I know you have a lot of questions so I'm going to try to answer them all by explaining everything. First off, I want to say I'm sorry. Tony and Ziva, I'm sorry for pushing you away in California, for making you feel guilty about my death. Ducky, I'm sorry Vance had to take away my "body" without you knowing and for forcing you to keep my test results a secret. Abby, I'm sorry I haven't been around to be the mommy. McGee, I'm sorry I never got a chance to get to know you better, but I can fix that now. I'm sorry for putting your life in danger on that mission, Tony. I'm sorry I wasn't there to come to Somalia to rescue you Ziva. Jethro, I'm sorry for lying to you about being sick, for leaving you in Paris, for telling you no off the job, and for not being there when you got into trouble with the Mexican drug cartel. I wish I could've been there for you all, but the past is the past and I can't do anything about that. I know you guys are probably pissed at me, but if you allow me to I'd like to make it up."

"Well I can't speak for them, but Jennifer, dear I forgive you. I've always loved you like a daughter and I'm overjoyed to have you back. You have really managed to beat out all the odds, even if I'm not sure how you did it," Ducky said stepping forward to give Jenny a hug.

"Thank you Ducky, I've always thought of you as a father and I'm glad you can forgive me. I guess I just got really lucky."

"That's certainly it, my dear."

"You don't owe me an apology and therefore I have no reason not to forgive you. It's nice to see you again dir-um, I mean," McGee stammered. He was so used to calling her director; he didn't know what to call her anymore. It seemed weird to call her Jenny like everyone else did.

"It's Jenny now, McGee. Did you really not know my name after three years of being your boss?" Jenny teased, making McGee's face turn a bright shade of red.

"Oh no Jenny, I knew your name it just, um sounded weird to call you that," McGee said embarrassed.

"I was just teasing you, McGee its fine," Jenny said with a small laugh. It was nice to see that some things had not changed.

"Oh Jenny of course I forgive you!" Abby said wrapping her in another big bear hug. She had really missed those hugs and Abby. Abby was like the daughter she never had, always bringing happiness and joy to those around her. In the days after the shooting, it would've been nice to have her around to brighten the mood a little.

"Jenny after everything we have been through, there is nothing you could do that I would not forgive you for. I felt guilty about not being there to save you, but now that you are here I guess everything is good."

"Thank you Ziva and I heard you became an American citizen congrats," Jenny smiled at the Israeli turned American woman who stood across from her. They had both walked through hell to get where they were today and it made them stronger. Now that the guilt was gone they could resume the friendship that had been lost in the days after she'd been director of NCIS.

"Don't sweat it Jenny, the past is the past. I'm just glad you're alive, now I can stop feeling so damn guilty every May and focus on girls," Tony said with a smile. Although he never admitted it, he had really missed Jenny. He often blamed himself for her death and had missed the friendship they had when he was doing undercover work.

"Wouldn't want you to miss any girl time DiNozzo," Jenny said in a teasing tone. She hadn't expected the warm welcome she received, but she was glad she was back in the team's good graces. Except for one Special Agent Gibbs, who hadn't said anything. She really hadn't expected him to forgive her, but then again she hadn't expected to be sent to Italy with him for a mission.

"I'm glad you had a chance to reunite, but now we've got to get back to work. McGee, dig up as much research as possible based off the research Jenny did. Tony and Ziva, double check Jenny's contacts. Jenny and Gibbs, please try to make up so no one has to come to Italy to retrieve a body bag. I already had to do that once."

"But director we haven't heard the rest of her story!" Abby whined.

"It's alright Abby, you can all come to my new house tonight for dinner and I'll tell you. You're all welcome, even you Vance. But I don't have Noemi anymore so I'll probably just get take out or pizza." Choruses of see you there's were heard as Team Gibbs and Vance headed out. Jenny and Gibbs were left alone in the dark MTAC room.

"Jethro."

"Why'd you lie to me Jen?"

"I didn't want you to worry about me and I didn't want sympathy. I had already accepted that I was going to die and I was ready to. But before you ask that's not why I went out to California on my own. I went out there because I knew she wasn't going to stop until one of us was dead and since I was dying anyways I figured it should be me. After all I was the one who didn't make the kill."

"Are you okay now?"

"Yes, I've undergone treatment and I'm cured, but I still take medicine and visit the doctor every month, hence the significance of the 24th. Originally I just wanted to die, especially after being shot so many times and close to death, but Vance, Heather, and my mother would not allow it. They forced my into a clinical trial and it worked. Looking back I'm glad they did, it gave me a second chance at everything."

"It sounds like you're living a nice life."

"Eh, it's alright. California is a little warm for my liking but I like being with Heather, my mother, and Heather's kids, it's been nice to watch them grow. I don't have many friends, because I'm supposed to be dead and it gets a little lonely at times. I help out with the LA office, doing various things, but only Hettie and Callen know I'm there. Other than that I just do boring things like go to the beach, read, and garden. I miss NCIS headquarters and the interaction with the agents, especially your team. I don't, however, miss the director's position."

"I thought that was what you wanted. You said you were good at politics and didn't miss the field work."

"It was what I wanted at first, but after the whole Frog mess I realized I only wanted it to get revenge. I do like politics and I'm good at them, but the endless hours of paperwork and being controlled by bigger agencies gets old fast. As for the field work, I don't miss it that much, but I do miss going undercover with you. Actually above all, I miss you. Not that, that matters since you're never going to forgive me, but I just thought you should know. After all, I've already admitted I loved you and I was sorry for everything, so why not say I miss you."

"I don't believe in apologies, but I'll accept yours." Gibbs watched as his words made her face light up. She looked so happy he couldn't help but smile. He had intended to not forgive her, but like always she ruined his self-control. She had that effect on him, and try as he might to fight it he couldn't. She was a pain in the ass at times, but he just couldn't live without her.

"I must be very special."

"You are Jen, always have been, always will be."


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I usually forget a disclaimer so here's one- if I owned NCIS chapter one would've been the episode you watched Tuesday night. But Nature of the Beast was good too.. Thanks for reading!**

Team Gibbs showed up at Jenny's house at exactly 6:30 looking for food and answers, but mainly just food. Their former boss's sudden reappearance had left this with many questions, but trying to stop the Italian mafia from killing NCIS had left them exhausted and hungry. As they walked into Jenny's new house, Gibbs immediately noticed the difference. It was smaller and not as fancily decorated. When you walked through the front door there was a hallway that led to the kitchen lined with tiles. On the left sides, a staircase led to upstairs and on the right side there was a dining room. The dining room was simply decorated; a long wooden table stood in the middle covered with a cheery yellow table cloth. On the left wall was a large window which overlooked her front yard, on the left wall was a large abstract painting and a small table filled with all sorts of food and drinks. It was clear Jenny had changed a lot since he had last seen her.

"It's different isn't it Jethro?"

"Yep sure is."

"Do you like it?"

"It doesn't look like something you like. It's not very fancy." He was pretty certain he had hit a nerve with her, until a smile broke out on her face.

"My old house, which you so nicely burned down, was decorated by my parents and I never really changed anything. It was what I grew up with, what I was used to so I kept it. But now that it's all gone and that part of me died three years ago in that California diner this house is decorated more to my tastes. It's smaller with simple and bright decorations; I love it." He wasn't very clear on what he meant by that, but he smiled because she looked so happy.

"That's all that matters."

"Yeah I guess it is. Come on Jethro let's go eat." They headed over to the food table and gathered their food with the rest of the team. Gibbs and Ducky sat at either of the table, Jenny sat to the left of Gibbs and Abby to the right. McGee sat on the other side of Abby with Palmer next to him and Breena next to Palmer. On the other side of Jenny sat Ziva who was next to Tony and Tony sat next to Vance. Ducky said Grace and then everyone dove into their food, enjoying the take-out fest Jenny had brought them. Jenny smiled at the scene unfolding in front of her, everyone looked tired but happy.

"Can we hear the story now Mommy!"

"I think the story from that night in the bar 10 years ago would be much more entertaining," Vance said teasing her with a smirk on his face.

Jenny's eyes narrowed as she glared at him, "we promised to never speak of that night again." She looked furious as the team looked on with wide eyes.

"Are you sure you didn't agree to that with Agent Keith? You seemed really fond of him when you were-"

"Enough Vance, or else I will tell them what happened in Vegas and maybe I'll leak it to the press. Complete with pictures, _all the pictures_." Vance stopped dead in his tracts, he knew better than to continue on if he wanted to maintain his reputation. One thing he learned about her was that when she got pissed off and made threats she usually kept them. The last thing he needed to deal with was the media with an embarrassing story from a drunken Vegas night. The team looked on with wide eyes wondering what the two were talking about. They had never known how close the two nor could they understand why they were. Vance was better now than when they first met him, but sometimes it was hard to like him.

"Anyways back to my story, what do you want to know?"

"Why did you comb Tony and I off and as your security details?" Ziva asked, hoping to get the answer to the question she had pondered so many times.

Jenny sighed, leave it to Ziva to ask the hard questions first. "It's brush Ziva, not comb. I knew I was going to die in that diner and I didn't want you guys to go down with me. You two are both damn good agents and NCIS needs you both."

"Well you were clearly wrong about that, were you not?"

"Yes I was wrong; I was wrong to brush you and Tony off without telling you what was going on. Just lie I was wrong not to tell all of you how sick I was. I could go on but you get the point, I make a lot of mistakes and in those three years as director I was wrong a lot." Just as Gibbs hated apologies, Jenny hated admitting she was wrong. It took a lot for her to come out and say she had been so wrong, but she owed it to her former agents to admit it.

"You know I forgive you Jenny, but I speak for both Ziva and I when I say we felt personally responsible for your death. We felt that if we had done more then we could have helped you take down the shooters."

"I know Tony, I had hoped you wouldn't feel guilty but I knew you would. I never met for you to feel that way; it was a mess I had created with all my own mistakes."

"Are you still sick dear?" Ducky asked.

"No Ducky I've been better for about two years now. I underwent treatment and I still take medicine and make a monthly trip to the doctor. But I'm healthy again despite the doctors thinking I was going to die. At first I honestly believed I wasn't going to make it and I was really pissed at Vance for not letting me die. "

"That's the understatement of the year," Vance mumbled.

"As I was saying, I was really pissed but then I got back in touch with my mom and Heather who forced me into the clinical trial. I was very much against it at first and became depressed but then I started getting better and I decided I wanted to live again. Also I became very close to my nieces and nephews who kept telling me not to die, it was quite cute. And I know I'm rambling right now so I'm going to stop right after I say this. Thank you Vance for not letting me die despite my protests, for everything you've done while I was sick, and for letting me help out at the LA branch. I know we tease each other and get mad at each other, but you really are the best."

Vance had a huge grin on his face while Team Gibbs looked utterly lost. "That means a lot Jenny, it really does. Thank you for coming to DC every time I need you, for your advice in dealing with the job, for helping my wife and kids, and most of all for being here right now. You were right about the job changing who you are, I'm not so certain I like who I've become. And judging by the looks of their faces, I can tell they're wondering why we're so close and acting like this."

"It is a little weird to see our current boss being all buddy-buddy with our former and supposedly dead boss," Tony explained earning him a quick head slap from Gibbs, "hey we were all thinking it!" Gibbs shook his head and Ziva head slapped Tony again. Tony was right, but it was one of those things you don't say out loud.

"Well maybe we need to invite Vance to one of our little family dinners and get to know him better!" Abby exclaimed. She had a way of always seeing the best in people even if others didn't.

"I'd enjoy that Abby, thank you."

"Well, we're glad to have both of you here," Ducky said, "especially you Jennifer, we've missed you."

"I've missed you guys too; now fill me in on what I've missed." Jenny sat back and listened as the team told her stories of what she had missed. She smiled at how animated the team became as they talked and she was happy to listen. She felt she was actually a part of this family that Abby so had talked of. When she was director, Abby had referred to her as the mommy of the family but she never felt a part of it. She had to distance herself away from the team to ensure fair treatment for each team, but she had really wanted to be a part of it. Now she had her chance to do just that and she was not going to pass it up. There was a reason why she had brought a house near D.C. and a reason why she had come back here to help Vance in the first place; she had wanted to see them again. She even would've settled on a quick glance for a few seconds; anything to let her know they were okay. But now she had so much more and she would not be disappearing anytime soon.

**A/N: Sorry this chapter is so short and it took me so long to update I've been way too busy and stressed out. I'll give you a nice long chapter next time!**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: I don't own NCIS, but I really wish I did…**

Jenny was relaxing on the couch with a cup of tea when her doorbell rang, startling her. She got up to answer the door, but it was too late Gibbs had already let himself in. He was surprised to see that she no longer locked the door, just more proof she had changed.

"You don't lock your door?" he asked, eyeing her suspiciously.

"Last time I checked you don't either and why should I? It's not like anybody, but a select group of people know I'm alive," she answered defensively, "however I am impressed you rang the bell instead of barging in."

Gibbs shrugged, he believed it was rude to just barge into people's homes, offices, however were a different story. "Some people change Jen."

"Good song, 'here's to the strong, thanks to the brave, don't give up hope, some people change.'"

Gibbs looked at her, a confused look on his face. He had no clue what song she was talking about, but it sounded like a country song. He watched as she walked over and pulled out some kind of black and silver electronic device and plugged it into what he thought was a white stereo. He really wasn't sure what she was doing until a country song started playing from the speakers.

"It's a song called 'Some People Change' by Montgomery Gentry, it's one of my favorites give it a listen." They both listened as the song played on Jenny's iHome. Since spending time with her mother and sister, she had become an increasingly bigger fan of country music. Something about the way there was a song for every possible emotion made her feel better; like what she was going through was normal. As stupid and cliché as it sounded, music had gotten her through her roughest days. Not that she would ever admit that out loud, she had a thing against showing weaknesses.

The song ended and she flipped her iHome off, "what do you think Jethro?"

"Never heard of the song or the singer, but not bad."

"Of course you haven't, it's impossible for you to know more than five songs at any given time."

"I happen to like my five songs thank you very much. Why do I need one of those fancy music playing things that hold a billion songs when I don't even know or like that many songs?"

"They're called iPods, Jethro and none of them hold a billion songs or anything remotely close to that number. Wait I just realized I never asked you why you're here?"

"So you can play country music songs and educate me on those music playing things."

"iPods, Jethro, iPods and very funny but that's not why you're here. "

"Yeah you're right; I came here to check on you." She wasn't sure if she was buying this or not, but it sounded like something he would do. She also wasn't sure if she should find it cute or annoying. On one hand, it showed he cared enough to check up on her. On another hand, he had walked in when she was just starting to settle in with the book she was reading.

"I'm a big girl Jethro, I can handle it."

"Yeah well what if someone robbed you because your door was unlocked Jen?"

"If someone wanted to rob me Jethro, they would have, even if my door was unlocked. And I don't see why you're making such a big deal about my door being unlocked; you never lock your door."

"It's different."

"It's not Jethro and I think you know that. Now why don't you tell me why you're here or else I'm going to settle in and continue reading my book."

"I guess I just wanted to see you. I've missed you so much and I never thought I'd see you again. Like DiNozzo and Ziva, I felt I could have done something to stop you from 'dying' and that's what killed me. Well that, and the fact I never got to say goodbye. But now that you're here I want to be with you as much as possible and figure you out; you're different now."

Jenny was at a loss for words, she never expected Jethro to blame himself for her 'death.' He wasn't assigned to be her security detail; he hadn't even been in California at the time! She had gone to deal with what she should have all those years ago so he would be safe. Instead she ended up hurting him more, which was made worse when just two years later Mike died. In four years he had thought he had lost two people who meant a lot to him. He didn't deserve that, no one did. But as if that wasn't bad enough, he had lost his first wife and his daughter. Everyone who meant a lot to him died and it just wasn't right, he was a good person. But she was here now and she could alleviate some of the hurt by being here. Yes, there was no way she could bring back Shannon, Kelly, or Mike but she could be there for him.

"Jethro I went out there because I thought I could save you and I never thought or wanted you to take the blame. In fact I thought by keeping you back here you wouldn't feel any guilt, I'm sorry Jethro."

"It's okay Jen, I forgive you."

"Good, why don't I make us some coffee and we can talk about why you think I'm different." Gibbs nodded his head, not certain if she offended by him saying she was different now. She didn't seem angry, but he could never know.

Jenny motioned for Gibbs to join her on the couch and handed him his cup of coffee. She smiled as she watched him drink the hot beverage from the mug. He may have actually knocked on her door for change, but there were some things that can never change. And Gibbs always needing to drink coffee was definitely one of them.

"Jen you're not angry because I said you're different now right?"

Jenny laughed, "No of course not, I've changed quite a bit. The director's position has a way of changing people for the worse. You have to grow this thick outer shell, especially as a woman, to get the respect you deserve and it can turn you into an egotistical jerk. Case in point, Vance, he was never one to be such a jerk before he was director. Yes, he's always being egotistical and tough to deal with at times, but he really is a nice guy. Actually you two are one in the same and I think that was part of your problem with him. That and he challenged you, which you don't like. But that's beside the point, yes I'm different now. Being deathly ill and living through it will do that to you, gives you a new outlook on life. Plus the stress of the director's job is gone and I no longer have to deal with you. Because as much as I like, actually love you, you are the pain in the ass to deal with when you get mad."

"Gee Jen you sure know how to flatter a guy."

"I try Jethro."

"I love you too Jen, I never stopped." Jenny felt her heart beat faster as a wide smile spread across her face. She felt like a love sick teenager, but she didn't care. Finally, after all these years, they had admitted their true feelings for each other. There were still things that needed to be said, details that needed to be worked out, but for right now they had taken an important first step.

"Jethro, once upon a time I asked you to stay and I took no for an answer."

"I know Jen."

"Let's not let that happen again."

"Then make better choices."

"I did what I thought was the best for me at the time, of course I ended up being wrong, but I don't regret following my instincts. However I'm not going anywhere this time."

"That a promise Jen?"

"Yes Jethro, it is. This time I will not leave, no matter what."

"I will hold you to that, I better not wake up in Italy and have you not be there." After he said it he realized that might have been the wrong thing to say. However Jenny didn't look too upset so he decided not to dwell on it.

"That an order boss?"

"Boss?" She hadn't called him boss in over ten years, since her days as a probie. It felt weird to hear her say it again, yet it was nice at the same time. It reminded him of a time when they were just started to realize their feelings for each other. Before she had left him in Paris, before all the mistakes they made. The past made be the past, but their past was something that made him smile.

"You have more seniority so I assume Vance and SecNav will put you in control over the op."

"I'm pretty certain this is your op, but if they did we'd be partners so I wouldn't be your boss."

"Oh yeah, you're right. Well it's getting late, Jethro will you stay?"

"I'm not going anywhere Jen."

"Me either."


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: This is the edited version because I was half asleep when I wrote this and forgot Shannon had red hair… so big thanks to TheBreakfastGenie who saved the day! **

Team Gibbs, Vance, and Jenny were standing in MTAC Monday morning, just a weak since Jenny had "come back from the dead," as Abby liked to call it. They were waiting to meet with SecNav to discuss their plan for taking down the Italian mafia. There was a nervous energy in the air, this was a big case and the fate of NCIS was in their hands. They all knew the risks, the challenges that were lying ahead, but they were ready. Or as ready as they'll ever be. SecNav appeared on the large screen and everyone looked at him expectantly.

"Good morning everyone," he greeted.

"Morning sir, how was your weekend?" Vance asked, he was still on SecNav's bad side and he desperately wanted to be on his good side.

"Nice brown nosing attempt Vance." Gibbs and Jenny had matching smirks, Tony laughed then got head slapped by Ziva, and McGee looked away trying to hide his laughter. Vance looked annoyed, but didn't say anything.

"Okay first things first: Shepard, Gibbs, pack your stuff you fly out to Italy tomorrow afternoon. You're mission will be one you've done before: acting as a married couple to get information. The head of the mafia has named himself Bonaventura, which ironically is Italian for good fortune. His real name is Costanzo Bianchi and his wife's name is Elisabetta, according to Intel we've acquired in order to get into Costanzo's good graces you must get along with his wife. This is why you will play a married couple who have just moved to Italy for a change of pace. It's a good cover since as far as I know neither of you speak fluent Italian, it also leaves you wiggle room to create your own lies. Acquire as much information as you can and at the end of each week you will call us on a secure line we give you to provide us with the information. You can expect to be there for at least three months and Jenny I've already ensured there's a doctor there who can attend to you. Any questions?"

"No sir and thank you I appreciate it."

"You're welcome Jenny and how about you Gibbs?"

"No sir."

"Excellent, an agent will meet you at the airport tomorrow at 1600 hours with your tickets and any additional information. Now you two go home to pack and make arrangements. Everyone else is to remain with me to find out their missions."

Jenny and Gibbs got up and walked out of MTAC silently. Apparently SecNav did not know their history or he would never have sent them on an opp that would cause old pain to surface. Even though Jenny had promised not to leave again, this mission was too much like Paris for Gibbs. He wanted to believe she wouldn't leave, but his past experiences told him not to. She loved him, he loved her, it shouldn't be complicated, yet it was. As memories from Paris overwhelmed he knew what he wanted to do. He pulled Jenny into the elevator and flipped the emergency switch. The lights dimmed as Jenny gave him a confused look, but he didn't care. He pushed her against the wall as his lips crushed hers in a long kiss. It was unexpected and rough, filled with their regrets. After a few minutes the need for air became too much and they broke apart, panting.

"Well that was…surprising." Jenny said. Her heart was beating out of control and she couldn't catch her breath. Gibbs had caught her off guard, but for once it was in a good way. It was reassuring to see that he still wanted her. She no longer felt stupid for still wanting him, because he wanted her too. Now all she had to do was prove herself to him, in a way it was like going back to her probie days. She had to re-earn his trust, prove that she wouldn't leave this time. She could explain it to him, but with Gibbs actions always spoke louder than words.

The elevator was filled with a comfortable silence; both were too consumed with their thoughts to talk. But they were hogging the elevator and people needed to use it. Jenny remembered how many complaints she got as director when Gibbs used the elevator as his personal "office." She flipped the emergency switch off and the doors opened. Gibbs raised an eyebrow as she motioned him to follow her. She walked out of headquarters and into the bright sunlight of the warm September day. Gibbs still looked confused, but did not say anything instead he just kept following her. She reached into her bag and pulled out her aviator sunglasses and keys.

"Get in Jethro," she ordered, opening the door to her red Suburban.

Jethro raised his eyebrow, "where are we going Jen?"

"To get you something to keep you entertained with on the plane." She remembered how much long plane rides bore him and how restless he got. If she didn't get him something to do he would go stir crazy, which in return would drive her nuts.

"Since when do you drive a Suburban?" He had remembered her saying they were gas guzzling mom cars and that she would never own one, yet here she was driving one.

"Since I have to drag my nieces and nephew plus their friends around to various activities, I needed something that had a lot of room. And before you say it yes I know I called them gas guzzling mom cars, but some days I feel like their mom."

"What are they like?"

"Who, my nieces and nephew?"

"Yeah, them."

"They're great kids, Lindsey is the oldest, she's twelve, then Liam, he's nine, and last but not least Addison, she's six. Lindsey is the artist of the family, she loves to paint and draw and she's really good at it. She also swims to keep in shape, but I don't think her heart's in it. Liam, is the athlete he plays lacrosse and soccer, and loves to run. He's on a travel lacrosse team that plays all over the state. Then there's Addison, the princess, she loves anything pink and sparkly. She's still trying to find her place but she loves her ballet classes."

"Kelly was the same way," Gibbs said casually, catching Jenny off guard. He never spoke of his daughter, but she was glad he was opening up to her.

"I know you don't like to talk about her but will you tell me what she was like?"

Gibbs sighed, he didn't like talking about her, but he wanted this to work. And the only way this was going to work is if he opened up to her. "She was a daddy's girl through and through, she loved pink, and she did ballet. She had red hair and brown eyes just like her mother. Her favorite movie was Cinderella and she was convinced she was going to grow up to be a princess. She always hated when I left, but she would send me letters all the time. She was perfect."

Jenny hadn't expected him to open so much, but she was glad he did. It was a sign that she had started to get his trust back. But it made her hurt for him; life was so cruel to him. She could've given him a daughter, but no she decided to leave.

"Jethro , if I had stayed in Paris do you think we would've had a family by now?"

"No, I don't," he said unintentionally hurting her.

"Why not?" she asked in a small, hurt voice.

"Don't get me wrong Jen I loved you with everything I had. But I wasn't honest with you and you weren't honest with me. We both had skeletons in our closets we weren't telling each other about and that would've held us back once they surfaced. You were too focused on your career for a family and I needed time to heal. But there's no sense dwelling on the past, let's look forward to the present."

Jenny smiled, happy to know he did in fact love her. "Thank you Jethro for being honest and open with me. I know how hard it is for you, but I appreciate it because we're going to make it work this time."

"It's never too late, Jen."

"No Jethro it isn't." And with that the couple got out of the car at the local Target to get supplies for their next adventure. They didn't know what it would bring, but no matter what they had each other.

**A/N: I just googled Italian first and last names so don't take offense! And thanks for reading! **


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: I'm trying to get better about updating faster but school and work run my life…. If only school essays were as fun to write as this story is! Disclaimer: I wish I could take credit for the Penelope Papers because it was amazing…but I can't. **

Jenny sat on the airplane, staring down at the white fluffy clouds that lied beneath the plane. From the time she was a child, she always loved watching the clouds as she flew. When she was small, she liked to pretend she was a bird, flying high through the sky. Now as an adult she liked the change of scenery and peacefulness it brought. No matter how hectic things were when she took off or how hectic they would be when she landed, she could count on the ride to be peaceful. Except when she was flying with Gibbs.

Gibbs was fidgeting around in his seat like a small child, unable to get comfortable. He had no patience for long plane rides and a long list of other things. Jenny had brought him two magazines, three books, four crossword puzzles, and five DVD's to watch on her portable DVD player, but nothing was keeping him entertained. They were only four hours in to an eight hour flight and he wasn't sure he could survive the boredom.

"Well some things never change," Jenny said with a sigh.

"And what do you mean by that Jen?"

"What I mean, Jethro is that you still can't sit still on a flight."

"I don't have a lot of patience."

"Really Jethro? I never noticed," Jenny replied, sarcasm filling her voice. Special Agent Gibbs was known for a lot of things, but his patience was not one of them. He was great with kids, had an excellent gut feeling, and knew how to break suspects, but he couldn't be wait.

"Funny Jen, but seriously how can you sit through this flight?"

"It's not that hard, I watch the clouds and read my books and before I know it the flight is about to land. You should try it; I think you'll really enjoy _The Things They Carried_. It's a war story so it's right up your alley and when I read it I really enjoyed it."

"I don't like to read Jen."

"Yes, I know that's why when you were acting director I came back to a pile of reports that were signed when they shouldn't have been, because you refused to read them."

"Hey! Cynthia kept piling them on and bothering me, plus I had a case to run and no patience for reading."

"That's the director's job Jethro."

"That's why it said director on your door, not mine Jen."

"Thankfully it's not my name on the director's office door now."

"As much as having Vance pisses me off sometimes, I'm glad you're not director anymore. It's nice to have the old Jenny back."

Jenny sighed, she knew she wasn't the best boss ever, but she didn't think she was _that_ bad. She'd like to think she was only bad to Gibbs, but she knew that wasn't the case. She remembered how awful she had felt when she looked back on how she treated McGee after he accidently shot the undercover cop. She basically had been a bitch to most of her agents, but they still put up with her. They still accepted her into her family, were still upset when she died, and they still forgave her from not telling them she was still alive. The only difference was they didn't know the old Jenny like Gibbs did. The pre-director, Jenny who was nice and fun; the Jenny people actually wanted to be around. But she had an opportunity to change that now and she sure as hell was not going to give it up.

"I'm sorry about the way I treated you and your team while I was director."

"Don't apologize Jen, you did what you did for a reason. Granted you took The Frog thing way too far, but I understand how revenge works. After you died I always thought it was such a shame my team got only a few glimpses of the old Jenny."

"I'm going to change that as soon as we get back. I think I'm going to start with McGee, I never got to really know him and I was less than understanding when he shot that undercover cop. I want him to know I'm not a bitch and that he is a really talented agent who gets undermined quite frequently by his coworkers."

"That's a good plan how ya gonna pull it off?"

"Don't worry, I have a master plan that I think will work great. You're just going to have to wait and see."

"Because it's you, I'm going to worry. Is my team going to come out from this plan in one piece or are they going to go missing again?"

That one stung a little, but she knew he hadn't meant to be mean. "Always the comedian Jethro."

Gibbs smirked and Jenny shook her head, smiling. They were able to easily continue their playful banter, like she had never been gone at all. It was nice to know that things fall apart, but they come back together too.

"Jeeennnyyyy," Gibbs said in a whiny, annoying tone.

"Yes Jethro?"

"How much longerrrr?"

Jenny sighed; he could be so childlike at times. Ironically enough he head slapped DiNozzo for his childish antics, yet put him on a plane and suddenly DiNozzo looks like the picture of maturity.

"Three more hours Jethro. Do you think you're going to make it? Or should I take out your favorite blanky and put you down for a nap with Mr. Snuggles?"  
>"If you wanted to play mommy Jen, you should go have some kids of your own. And last time I asked it was four hours, what happened?"<p>

"Well you're acting like a child right now so do you count as one? Or was that an offer… And it's because we were talking. Now I know talking is a foreign concept to you but it actually kills time."

"You're just on a roll today, aren't you Jen?"

"Hey I've got to keep myself entertained somehow."

"Well we can always do what we did in Serbia…" Gibbs said, flashing back to the small farmhouse they were shacked up in. Without Jenny, it would've been the most boring op he ever did. But because she was there, they managed to keep themselves quite busy.

"So that was an offer! Maybe when we get to Rome Jethro," Jenny said suggestively.

"That may be an offer if that's a promise."

"I guess you'll have to wait and see."

"You're killing me Jen."

**A/N: Sorry it's so short but I felt like this was a good place to start. Thanks for reading! **


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: So I've been worse than suckish about thanking and responding to my reviewers so here we go! A big thanks to: Penny Shepard, IluvMonkeys, left my heart in Paris, TheBreakfastGenie, NCIS She-Demon, Insanetrouble, JiBbS-tIvA4eVs, hopesmom888, KSBP, and JibbsShipper! Thanks to everybody who's been reading and reviewing! **

Gibbs and Jenny were in the process of getting _reacquainted_ when Jenny's cell phone started to ring playing an obnoxious little melody.

"Ignore it Jen," Gibbs said hoping she would. But he knew she wouldn't and he was right when she got up and picked her phone up.

"Damn piece of technology sure knows how to ruin the mood," Gibbs muttered to himself.

"It's SecNav Jethro. Shut up," she whispered. He rolled his eyes and waited, remembering how nice it was when they have done ops in Europe before cell phones were around. As necessary as the rest of the population thought they were, he found them to be a nuisance. While he waited for Jenny to get off the phone, he looked at the hotel room they were staying in. When they arrived, they hadn't really bothered to look at it, instead choosing to get reacquainted right away.

They were staying in the Camera Superior at the Hotel Trevi in Rome. It was a nice room with white and yellowish walls and brown and red accents. There was a king size bed against the back wall and a large wooden desk across from it. The bed was made out of dark wood, with squares of wood painted red against the headboard. The comforter was white with a brown stripped blanket at the end. It had white pillows and smaller brown accent pillows. At the end of the bed was a dark brown bench, and the desk chair was a chocolate brown color. Above the desk, was a large flat screen TV, which would probably never get used, complete with satellite TV service. The thick brown and white curtains covered the huge full length windows, overlooking the city. At the entrance of the room was a large red mirror, next to the bathroom. It was definitely the nicest room they stayed at during any of their ops. They would stay there for a month then switch hotels, in order to avoid suspicion. Although the Italian government was in on the mission, the mafia would be suspicious if they found out Americans were staying at a hotel close to one of their meeting places. That was their only concrete plan, the rest of the op was up in the air, depending on what was going on at that particular day. There didn't have much information on the mafia, but they had some and it was enough for them to know where to look.

Jenny hung up the phone and sighed. As much as she liked SecNav, she hadn't really wanted to talk to him, she wanted to be with Gibbs.

"What'd he say?"

"To go sightseeing around Rome, and when he says that he means go look for anybody suspicious and make contacts around the city."

"Can't we do it later," Gibbs whined.

"No Jethro, he said to go now and he's our boss, but if you're a good boy I'll reward you later."

"You kill me Jen."

"You keep telling me that," Jenny said with a smile as she walked over to the bed and planted a large kiss on his check. He tried to pull her down on top of him, but she quickly moved away. He got up and started chasing her around the room and she squealed with joy. Finally he caught her around the waste and pulled her close, kissing her neck.

"No Jethro."

"Come on Jen."

"I said later, we have a mission to do remember? Go get dressed."

"Fine."

"Good boy," Jenny said, as if she was talking to a child. She knew it would drive him crazy and that was exactly her motivation for doing it. She started unpacking her clothes and folding them into the dresser while Gibbs sat behind her on the bed.

"Stop staring at my butt Jethro."

"I've missed the view."

"Recycling old lines are we? Have you run out of sarcastic clever remarks?"

"What can I say? I guess I'm getting old."

"You're not getting old, but you are going to get ready now," she called as she strode into the bathroom to get ready. She came out a half hour later ready to go. Her long red hair was pulled back into ponytail and she had put make-up on. She wore a crimson colored sundress that fell to about mid-thigh with ruffles at the top and a bow around the waist. On top she wore a white short-sleeved sweater that she had borrowed from Heather. On her feet she wore a pair of silver gladiator sandals which matched her silver purse. She wore pearl stud earrings that her grandmother had given her when she was young and a silver heart necklace around her neck that her mom had given to her when she was done with her treatment.

"You look nice," Gibbs said taking her in. Even though it had taken her forever to get ready, it had been well worth it in the end, she looked beautiful.

"You look handsome too," Jenny said with a grin. He wore his usual blue polo shirt, with khaki shorts and a pair of white running shoes. He grabbed the camera out of his suitcase and put it in his pocket along with his cell phone. Jenny grabbed her guide book, Italian dictionary, and her iPhone and placed it in her bag. She put her aviator sunglasses on and took Gibbs's hand as she walked out of their room.

"Dove dobbiamo andare per primo?" Jenny asked speaking in fairly decent Italian. She had taken a semester of Italian in college, before switching to French because it was easier.

"What the hell did you just say Jen?" Gibbs asked frustrated that he couldn't understand her. He didn't know a single word in Italian and he hadn't had any time to learn some.

"I said 'where should we go first?' I know you didn't have any time to prepare for this mission, so don't worry if you don't know any Italian. You'll catch on quickly; you always were good with languages."

"How do you already know the language?"

"I took a semester of it in college and Google Translate is a wonderful thing."

"Google Translate?"

"Its…oh never mind. I believe it's one of those things you do things with as Ducky told me you like to call it."

"Okay gotcha, can I see the Italian dictionary?" She handed it to him and he flipped through the pages, looking for what he wanted to say.

"Come circa il letto?"

"You have a one track mind Jethro. I said if you were good, we would continue later, but right now you're not being good."

"Mi dispiace."

"See you're already getting the hang of it! And since you didn't answer I'm making an executive decision on where we're going."

"And where would that be?"

"Stiamo andando al Colosseo e il Pantheon."

"The Colosseum and the Pantheon?"

"Molto buona Jethro."

"Huh?"

"I said very good."

"Oh okay. Do you know where we're going Jen?"

"No, not really, but we'll figure it out as we go. I have a map and my phone so we should be okay. We'll just explore the city and shops like we used to in Paris." They both smiled at the mention of their days in Paris. The two missions may be very similar, but there was a sense of urgency with this mission that hadn't been there in Paris. In Paris things were relaxing; they spent many days just exploring the city. But now the fate of NCIS lied in the hands of this mission being successful and both were worried that in would affect the relationship they were building.

"What happened to the Colosseum and the Pantheon?"

"That was the plan but then I thought about it and I thought it might be fun to spend our first day doing what we used to do in Paris."

"Let's not dawn on the past Jen. This mission is going to be so much better than Paris. We're stronger now; we've been through so much. This is going to be our best one yet."

"Who are you and what have you done with my Jethro?"

"Your Jethro?"

"Yep, your mine now and we are so much stronger. Thank you for believing I'm not going anywhere this time."

"Prego Jen."

"Are you ready to begin our next adventure?"

"Sono pronta a tutto fino a quando sono con te." And with that they started into the bright sunlight of the city to start their next adventure.

**A/N: Prego- Thank you. Sono pronta a tutto fino a quando sono con te- I'm ready for anything as long as I'm with you. Disclaimer: any mistakes in my Italian is due to Google Translate because I can't speak Italian…or any language that isn't English… **


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: I'm so in love with this story that I've done more research for it than I have my schoolwork. I'm even working on learning Italian. Oh and I'm sorry but I couldn't help but make a Lizzie McGuire Movie reference, it made me fall in love with Rome to begin with. Oh and I keep forgetting my disclaimer: I wish I could take credit for Enemy on a Hill, but I'm not that creative. I only own the storyline and the OC's. **

It was like every city they had been to, busy and filled with tourists everywhere. October was one of the nicest months in Rome and tourists flooded the city. They had specific instructions from Vance to blend in and act like tourists, which was unusual for an overseas missions. But it was nice because they would be able to sightsee and speak English without raising suspicions. However when it came to time to blend in with the mafia to dig up details, things were going to get tricky.

"So what direction do you want to walk in?"

"I just heard about our two new destination: Vincelli Silk and then the Trevi Fountain."

"Let me guess, we're going shopping?"

"Yep! Vincelli Silk has some of the best scarves around and its right near the Trevi Fountain so we can go there after.

"You and your scarves."

"Oh stop it; you know you'd do anything for me. Plus you love spending time with me."

"Who has the ego problem now?"

"Unless you've had a major head trauma that Vance never mentioned and had a personality change, then you still do."

"Did you spend those years away practicing to be a stand up comedian?"

"Nah but I did take some classes at UCLA."

"Oh how impressive Ms. Smartypants."

Jenny smirked, "I try. Oh look there's the Trevi Fountain!" It was just as beautiful as she remembered it when she was young. The bright sunlight reflected off the beautiful blue water of the fountain while water slid off the intricately carved stones. Neptune, the God of the sea sat above the water riding a shell shaped chariot pulled by two sea horses. One seahorse is calm and the other is restive, symbolizing the changing patterns of the sea. Around the fountain tourists stood backwards and threw coins over their shoulders, hoping the old legend was true. Jenny fished around in her wallet for two pennies and handed one to Gibbs.

"What's this for Jen?"

"For you to throw in the fountain there's an old legend that says if you stand backwards and throw a coin over your shoulder into the fountain you will return to Rome."

"Ho solo voglia di tornare con voi Jen." He had a sincere smile on his face and it made Jenny wish he knew what she was saying right away. But she hadn't had any prior knowledge of Italian and it took her a little longer to acquire a new language. Usually she picked up on a language before he did, and she was a tad jealous he was learning faster.

"I said 'I only want to come back with you' and I only know that because I heard someone else say it and then a tourist translated it." Jenny smiled at his reassurances; he could be so sweet when he wanted to.

"Well Jethro, Io ti amo."

"I love you too Jen, always have and I always will." And with that they both reached in for a long kiss, not caring who was around then. Tourists and locals made various comments in English and Italian, but they were too busy to notice. This was everything they had waited for and no amount of rude people could ruin that. When the need for oxygen became too great they broke apart, panting. They exchanged smiles between them and a couple people broke into choruses of "awws" and started to clap. It was as cheesy as a chick flick, but neither cared, it had been a special moment.

Jenny laughed, "That may have been cheesier than the ending of the Lizzie McGuire if that's possible."

A group of American college kids studying abroad standing next to her laughed, "Hey the ending may be cheesy, but it's cute," said a blonde girl standing next to her.

"That movie made me want to go to Rome in the first place!" a brunette girl next to her exclaimed.

"What is the Lizzie McGuire Movie?" Gibbs asked, feeling rather out of the loop.

"Lizzie McGuire was a show on the Disney Channel when we were little about a pre-teen girl trying to survive middle school with her two best friends Gordo and Miranda. It was one of my favorite shows because it taught you how to deal. The movie was the end to the show and I watched it enough times when I was younger to recite it," the blonde explained.

"In the movie they go on a field trip to Rome, it's really quite cute Jethro."

"Do you often watch movies made for pre-teen girls Jen?"

"Ha. Ha. For your information one of Lindsey's babysitters showed it to her one night and she became so obsessed with it that she made us watch it at least a hundred times."

The brunette smiled, "I did that to my family too. I'm Carly by the way." She was a medium sized girl with wavy dark brown hair and brown eyes. She wore a black sundress with small different colored hearts on it, a white sweater, and a pair of white Converse All Stars.

"Nice to meet you Carly, I'm Jenny and this is Jethro. Are you guys on vacation?"

"Nice to meet you guys too. And no, Sabrina, Ralph, and I are here studying abroad for a semester."

"Oh that must be a wonderful experience is for you guys! Where do you guys go to school?"

"We go to Georgetown University in DC," Ralph answered. He was a tall guy with shaggy brown hair and a little stubble on his face. He wore a blue Under Armor shirt, blue jeans, and white Adidas sneakers. On his head was a white baseball cap turned backwards.

Jenny smiled at the mention of her Alma matter, "I went there too, those four years were some of the best years of my life."

"It's been a great two years already and I'm really excited to start my junior year in Rome!" Sabrina exclaimed. She was tall, thin girl with dirty blonde hair. She wore a long sleeved V-neck shirt with blue and purple stripes and white shorts. Around her neck she was a small star pendant that twinkled in the sun.

"I'm glad to hear that! Would you mind taking a picture of us in front of the fountain?"

"Of course!" Sabrina answered, "you guys are so cute together!" Sabrina snapped a few pictures of Gibbs and Jenny in front of the fountain before handing her camera off to Jenny for her to do the same. Jenny snapped pictures of the trio, smiling at the sight of them. They looked so happy; young and carefree. It reminded her of when she and Jethro had been in Paris, they weren't as young but they had that carefree attitude; spending their days exploring the city, taking in new sites, enjoying each other's company.

"Professor Smith is calling our names guys, we better go. Thank you Jenny and enjoy your trip!"

"Thanks Sabrina, you too." She smiled as she watched the trio run towards the professor, their backpacks bouncing on their backs. She turned towards Jethro who seemed to be zoning out next to her.

"You okay?"

"What? Oh yeah I'm fine."

"You were zoning out, what were you thinking about?"

He sighed, this whole being honest with her was a pain in the ass. But he really wanted to make it work this time so he had to. "Carly reminded me of one of Shannon's friends from high school, they always said they would go to Rome together one day. Originally I wasn't invited, but when she married Brian and had Kelsey, we decided we would wait until Kelly and Kelsey were older and go on one big trip to Europe. We had told Kelly about it and she had gone to the library to take out books on the matter. She got so excited and asked when we could go to Rome to see the Leaning Tower of Pizza." He let out a small chuckle and she smiled.

"That's adorable, Kelly must've been a cute little girl."

"She was beautiful; just like her mother."

"Would you like to go visit the Leaning Tower of Pizza, I mean Pisa, while tomorrow? For Shannon and Kelly?"

"I'd like that Jen."

"I like that you're talking to me."

"You make it sound like I never talk. I'm not mute."

"No, you just dislike conversation."

"No, I just don't believe in small talk." He never saw the point in making talking about random topics just for the sake of talking. He didn't find silences awkward, he enjoyed them. They gave him a chance to think through what had been said and file away anything that may be important.

"Oh yes, that's right. Now let's go shopping!" Gibbs groaned again, while Jenny smiled. It was clear he had been a bachelor for a little too long. Jenny dragged him to Vincelli Silk where they were met by an older woman with graying hair. She greeted them in Italian and Jenny did her best to respond in Italian but it was clear she was an American. If she wanted to make contacts in the city she was going to fool everybody into thinking she was Italian or make people trust her. But she wasn't going to worry about that right now, they were just starting out. For right now she was going to worry about exploring every inch of the shop on her hunt for the perfect scarf.

Gibbs hated shopping in any and all forms. One of the few benefits of being single was no wife to drag him on weekend shopping trips. He understood the need to get their faces out in the public but he really wished he could do it by walking around the city instead of shopping. There was a difference between when Jenny said she wanted to go shopping and when she said she wanted to explore the shops. When they were exploring the shops they would quickly poke through, maybe buy a thing or two then leave and move on to the next one. When she was shopping they would spend forever at the same store with her trying on everything in sight and asking him what he thought. It was a long, drawn out affair that left Gibbs bored as hell.

"You're really lucky I love you." They had been in the store for a good half hour now and he was getting increasingly restless. She must had tried on a billion of scarves by now and truth be told he could really care less which one she got. She looked beautiful in anything and everything without even trying; she didn't need all the extras.

"And why is that?" She knew quite well he didn't want to be there. But at the same time she knew he'd go anywhere that she was. He promised to follow her anywhere and he always kept his promises.

"Because if I didn't I wouldn't be here."

"But you are here because you're the best."

"The best what?"

"Special agent, lover, friend, rule breaker, disrupting door buster who refuses to knock, and so on."

"Yeah, yeah keep going."

"That's it Mr. Big Ego."

"You love my big ego."

"I love everything about you Jethro, the good, the bad, the indifferent; I love it all because it's what makes you the man you are."


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: I really hate when I don't update fast, but apparently my teachers think homework is important weird… Any who thanks for sticking with me and reviewing! And I didn't do as much research for this chapter so I'm not totally certain about how accurate it is….**

Jenny woke up to a bright ray of sunlight shining in her face and the strong smell of coffee filling her nostrils. They had been in Italy for almost a month now and they were loving every minute of it. They're Italian had improved, they had made friends and contacts, and they had seen many of the great sites. She was there for him when they visited the Leaning Tower of Pisa for Kelly and Shannon and he had a bad flashback that left him upset. He, in return, was there for countless hours of shopping and a few nightmares she occasionally got. They were very muc

Sleepily she sat up and rubbed the sleep off her eyes and looked around. Gibbs was sitting next to her quietly drinking his coffee while he watched her. He had a smile on his face as he handed her a coffee and a pastry.

"Wow that's impressive," she said with a smile.

"What is?"

"That you managed to go out and get this and come back without me waking up."

"You look so peaceful when you sleep, didn't want to wake you up."

"Under that tough marine act is a sweet, romantic man," she said moving into his lap. He wrapped an arm around her and she smiled. This was the Gibbs she knew and loved, not the one who liked to fight with her when she was director. But few people actually saw this side a Gibbs and it was such a shame, because it was the best side of him.

"Shhh that's classified information." She laughed as he put a finger to his lips and made the shhh noise.

"I have top secret security clearance." He wasn't sure how a former federal agency direction got top secret security clearance but it didn't surprise him she did. When she wanted something, she worked to make sure she got it. It was both an admirable and obnoxious trait at the same time, but it was a part of her and he loved every part of her.

"Wouldn't expect anything less."

Jenny smirked, "I always get what I want, especially now that I have you."

"You've always had me whether you've known it or not," he said kissing her lips softly. It was a simple kiss, short and sweet, but still meaningful. They broke apart and Jenny snuggled into his neck, not wanting to move. This morning was too perfect to ruin at the moment but they had a job to do.

"We should get ready Jen," Gibbs said as he pulled on his usual outfit. He wore basically the same outfit everyday: polo shirt, khaki shorts, and white sneakers. It was repetitive, but it looked good on him.

"Is that optional?" Jenny asked with a sigh, standing up to find clothes.

"If it was I wouldn't be putting on clothes, I'd be taking them off."

"Fine, but I want a rain check," she said with a fake pout.

"Only if you're a good girl," copying her words from earlier in their trip. She had to smile, he always knew the right thing to say. She decided on her outfit on the day and started to get ready. Today she choose a pair of jean Bermuda shorts, a short sleeve gray short, and a pair of white sneakers. They were going to meet with one of their contacts at a small coffee shop to exchange information on the man they were both trying to take down. Their contact was a member of the Italian intelligence agency who had a bone to pick with Bonaventura. He was working without the knowledge of the agency and they were hoping to keep it that way.

"You ready to go?"

"Almost, hold on a couple seconds."

"Why does it take you so long to get ready? We're not going anywhere special and we're coming straight back here when we're done and all that will be taken off."

"Because I'm a woman, that's why. I like to look good and keep it up and all of this will be remaining on." Not wanting to push his look Gibbs went to sit down on the bed and read through some of the intel on Bonaventura while he waited. He had to hand it to the guy, Bonaventura was a clever nickname for a mafia leader who made his "good fortune" doing various forms of illegal things. Examples included: stealing, drug dealing, arms dealing, being a hired hitman, and selling prostitutes to name a few. Motive was unknown and he had nothing his past that would make him bitter as far they knew.

"Now I'm ready," Jenny said coming out of the bathroom. She had done her hair and make-up and put on Gibbs's favorite perfume. Her hair was down and wavy and her make-up with simple. She liked to dress casually, but look good as well.

"You look beautiful Jen," he said kissing her forehead.

"You're just saying that to redeem yourself."

Gibbs smirked, "And if I am."

"Then you're doing a pretty good job, keep it up," she said taking his hand as they left their room. They started to make their way Sant'Eustachio Il Caffè, one of the best coffee shops in Rome. There they would meet their contact and exchange information. Their first month in Rome was coming to an end and pretty soon they would have to act on a plan if they were going to be successful. Time was of the essence in this mission and failure was not an option. Yet for some reason this mission had a light feeling to it, like it didn't matter. Maybe it was because after all these years they were back together and happy or maybe it was because SecNav and Vance we're not breathing down their necks, but either way it didn't seem like a life or death mission.

"Jethro?"

"Yeah Jen?"

"I love you, I always have, and I always will despite what happens."

"You planning on leaving again Jen?"

"No I just have a funny feeling that something major is going to happen soon." She always got a strange feeling when something big was going to happen, but she could never tell if it was something good or something bad. The last time this feeling appeared was the morning of the day she met with the MCRT again. Before that it was when she was in California for Decker's funeral.

"A good feeling or a bad feeling?"

"I really don't know."

"Well no matter what I'll be here. I love you Jen."

"That's all I need to know." They held hands as they entered the coffee shop and went to join the line. In front of them was Dante Rizzo, their contact. He was a tall, muscular man with dark black hair and brown eyes. He wore a pair of jeans and a yellow polo shirt with a tan canvas messenger bag hanging from his shoulder.

"Ciao Jenny, Jethro," he said with a thick Italian accent.

"Ciao Dante," Jenny answered in an almost flawless Italian accent. Dante kissed her hand and then shook Gibbs's.

"Avete delle informazioni?" Gibbs asked, raising his eyebrow.

"Naturalmente ho le informazioni sui possibili nuovi commercialisti. Devi scegliere una persona di fiducia." Dante responded quickly to avoid suspicion, if they were compromised things were going to fall apart quickly. And none of them could afford that, not with everything on the line.

Gibbs and Jenny, were both very confused and it was evident on both of their faces. They were still new to the language whereas Dante had been speaking it his entire life. He spoke quickly, and had a thick accent.

"I said, 'Of course I have the, um, information about possible new, um, accountants. You have to, um, pick someone you… trust.' I don't want anyone to know," he clarified in English. His Italian accent sounded stronger when he spoke in English. He'd been practicing for years, but it was still hard for him to quite grasp it. He knew the words, but he couldn't always think of them. And, like Ziva, the American idioms were very confusing.

"Oh sì, la fiducia è molto importante. È per questo che vi abbiamo chiesto informazioni, perché abbiamo fiducia in te," Jenny responded, impressed she was able to string together such a long sentence. But one look at her lover told her she was not following. Shaking her head she took a notebook out of her bag and wrote out what she had said in English. He read her scribbles, "Oh yes, trust is very important. That's why we asked you for information, because we trust you," and nodded, letting her know she understood. Dante laughed at their antics, it amazed him that Jenny could grasp the language so much easier than Gibbs.

Dante slid a manila folder across the table and Gibbs peaked inside. The intel file contained all of the usual things: photos, news clippings, government documents, and the like. All of it was English, which Gibbs was especially thankful for. In their days in Paris, intel files were given in French which was difficult, if not impossible, to understand when they were first learning the language. He remembered many late nights sitting up with a French dictionary try to understand. It was never a fun experience and he often went to sleep with a pounding headache. McGee had told him about some fangled computer thing that translated from one language to another, but that had not been around then.

"Domande?" Dante asked, raising an eyebrow. He hoped the couple could keep their questions down to a minimum for now, but he never knew with the two of them.

"Quanto tempo?" Jenny responded. She knew her timeline for getting this mission done, but she was wanted to make sure Dante was thinking the same thing.

"Il tempo stringe. Quanto prima, meglio è." Dante responded, time was always going to be ticking but they couldn't let it tick away. As always the sooner, the better.

"Cominciamo ora." Gibbs said, more than ready to get started.

"Not so fast Jethro," a voice called out. A voice from his past that he hadn't heard in years. A voice that made his face go pale.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: umm yeah I have no idea where this is coming from… silly plot bunnies! Anyways thanks for reading and reviewing! ** **Warning: there's strong language in this chapter.**

"Anthony," Gibbs said, recomposing himself. Jenny looked between the two men nervously, she had no clue who this man was but if he had the ability to make him go pale she knew he must not be good.

"Jethro," the man responded standing up straight. He was the exact definition of the Napoleon Complex. A short man, who always tried to appear bigger, but rarely succeeded. He was balding and fat, aging clearly had done him no favors.

"You going to attack me again?" Gibbs wasn't afraid of him, Leroy Jethro Gibbs was afraid of no one, but he definitely made him nervous.

"Oh Jethro why can't we just put the past behind us and move on?"

"Hell no. What do you want?" Gibbs was getting increasingly pissed off at this man. His face was bright red and his coffee cup was being crushed in his hand.

"Sounds like someone are still feeling guilty over his wife and daughter's unfortunate demise. I'm glad to see somebody carried out my revenge." Jenny gulped hard at this mystery man's vicious tone. It was clear to everyone there that he was hitting a nerve.

Gibbs slammed his fist down on a nearby table while Jenny and Dante backed away. "You're an awful son of a bitch who's just pissed because you could never earn Shannon back after going an fucking everything up. You just couldn't handle the fact that she was happy with me and we had a family. You tried a stupid idiotic revenge plot that landed you in a mental hospital and lost you your job. You fucked up your life because she ended up with me. Yeah I lost them, but it's better to love and have lost than to never have loved at all and she sure as hell never loved you!"

"She did to love me, she just never admitted it!"

"Anthony what do you think you're doing?" A blonde woman came running over and grabbed him away. Anthony looked ashamed and Gibbs smirked, apparently he was still being controlled by his psychiatrist sister. The triumphant look on Gibbs's face let Jenny and Dante know he had won this battle, despite the fact they had no clue what was going on.

"Jethro, I am so sorry! Are you okay? Anthony is still unstable, but I got him a leave from the hospital to attend our cousin's wedding over here."

"It's alright Lisa don't worry about it, I'm fine."

"Come on Anthony, sorry again Jethro enjoy your trip!" Lisa called before dragging a screaming Anthony away by the arm.

"So where do we want to start?" Gibbs asked turning back towards Jenny and Dante. They both looked at him with big eyes, but Jenny knew better than to ask. Dante started to, but Jenny quickly covered his mouth to stop him. If he wanted to tell her, he would and if he didn't, no amount of asking what get her an answer.

"Cominciamo presso la sede." Dante said, taking the hint he was not going to find out what just happened. He had figured out within minute Gibbs was not a big fan of talking. He grunted when as much as he could and spoke short sentences when he couldn't. But he made his intentions clear and there was no intention he made clearer than his love for Jenny. Dante could see just by the way he looked at her that he loved her.

"Headquarters is always a good place to start," Jenny responded for Gibbs's sake, heading into the bright sunlight, "la strada Dante."

Dante nodded and started walking with Jenny and Gibbs behind him. "I said lead the way, in case you're wondering. You okay?" The expression on her face showed how worried she was, but she was trying hard to fight it.

"Yeah fine." She squeezed his hand and sighed, this was as good as it was going to get. She didn't need him to pour his heart out to her, she just wanted for him to admit when he wasn't okay. It didn't seem like to much to ask, but to a former Marine who didn't do feelings it was too much.

"Um abbiamo un piano?" Dante asked turning around. It had just occurred to him he couldn't bust into headquarters holding his gun and badge, he was undercover. They needed plans and right now they had none. He got the idea that Gibbs wasn't very big on planning things out, he preferred to act on gut feelings.

"Um how about Gibbs and I stakeout headquarters and you talk to anybody who might have information? Er I mean- dite di Gibbs e il quartier generale picchettamento I e di parlare con qualcuno che potrebbe avere informazioni?"

"Sì, è una buona idea. C'è un edificio per uffici abbandonato dall'altra parte della strada si può picchettamento e scattare foto. Avete una macchina fotografica?" Dante said, nodding his head in approval.

"Yes, my camera's in my bag. Can you show us the way to the abandoned building? "

"Hiding out in an abandoned building again?" Gibbs asked, "guess the times change but the missions don't."

"You got a better idea Jethro?" Jenny asked sarcastically.

"No, Jen. Off to the abandoned building we go!" Gibbs responded with mock excitement.

"You're sounding more like DiNozzo everyday." Jenny said before receiving a swift head slap to the back of her head. She was shocked for a moment, she hadn't been head slapped since her days as a probie. When she was his probie she received almost as many head slaps as DiNozzo did. But when they started sleeping together and she became his partner that all changed.

"What the hell was that for?" she spat, angry at him. He wasn't her superior, he couldn't just head slap her.

"For comparing me to DiNozzo!"

"Rule Number 5: You don't waste good. You always said DiNozzo was good so what's the problem?"

"He's damn good, but he's an adult in a college frat boy's body."

"He's matured quite a bit over the time I was his boss!"

"You can't handle the fact I just head slapped you for the first time since Paris!"

"I'm not your probie anymore! In case you don't remember I was your boss!"

"How could I forget Je-en? I believe you told me no off the job when I missed you."

"I know what I said Jethro! There's no need to bring my old mistakes back up!

"Ah love," Dante called out sarcastically to stop the couple's bickering, "nulla di simile." He remembered his grandmother used to tell him 'Non c'è niente come l'amore' which roughly translated to 'there's nothing like love.' Sometimes she would say it sarcastically when a couple was fighting or when she was angry with her husband. But most of the time she meant it. She was married to her husband for seventy years until her death at age eighty-eight. They had their fights like every lovers do, but they loved each other senseless. Through thick and thin, sickness and health, they survived it all. That's how despite their current fight, he knew Jenny and Gibbs were going to make it. He saw what true love looked like from his grandparents and he knew what Jenny and Gibbs had was definitely true love.

"Well, what is the term um I think it's loveparrots? We're here," Dante said.

"It's lovebirds Dante." Jenny explained.

"Are parrots not birds? They have um wings and they fly."

"Parrots are a type a bird, but the phrase you're referring to is lovebirds."

Dante gave an exasperated sigh, "Whatever, we're here go do your jobs. Se si può fare senza uccidere l'altro per primo," he muttered softly under his breath.

"We can do it without killing each other thank you very much Dante," Jenny said. Dante cursed silently to himself, he forgot how quickly she was picking up on this language. He would have to keep that in mind, the last thing he wanted was to get on the redhead's bad side.

"Addio Dante."

"Addio Jenny, Gibbs," Dante called moving away quickly. Jenny and Gibbs made it into the abandoned building and looking around. There wasn't much to look at except for a concrete floor filled with debris and the remains of an old office building. Jenny walked over to an old desk, brushed it off, and put her stuff down. She pulled out her camera and threw it at Gibbs who caught it and walked over to the windows. Jenny pulled out the files and started to read them, highlighting important information.

Both were too absorbed in what they were doing to notice someone else had come to join the party. "Am I seeing a corpse?" the man called out in an unmistakable British accent.

**A/N: This is my lame attempt at a cliff hanger….**


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: So did you guys figure it out? Of course you did, because we all watch way too much NCIS or else we wouldn't be on this site would we? **

"Trent, what are you doing here?" Jenny asked, slipping back into her director's tone.

"What no hello, how are you? It's been three years and you don't even want to know how I've been?"

"All I want to know is why you're here."

"Both SecNav and Vance tried to call you." Jenny pulled her phone out of the pocket of her shorts, surely enough she had five missed calls. Two were from Vance, one was from SecNav, and two from Tony and Ziva. In the midst of her fight with Gibbs she hadn't heard her cell phone ringing or felt the vibrations. The voicemails all seemed pretty neutral, neither SecNav nor Vance sounded angry, and for that she was glad, all they said was that the CIA was in on their mission and they would be working with Kort.

"Well that explains why you're in the country, but how did you know how to find us here?"

"In case you forgot the 'I' in CIA stands for intelligence. Even NCIS could figure out that if one was going undercover they would hide in an abandoned building near where the target hangs out."

"Are you going to make sarcastic comments or actually do anything Kort?" Gibbs called out in an annoyed tone.

"I believe you're making sarcastic comments and not doing anything as well," Kort spat back. Jenny rolled her eyes; she couldn't believe two grown federal agents were acting like such children.

"Jethro go take pictures, Kort go be a pain in the ass and harass people for information or something. You're good at being a pain in the ass."

"Funny Shepard." Kort called as he walked out of the building. She was surprised he actually listened to her directions, but glad to see him gone. He was no doubt a smart man, but he was sarcastic, obnoxious, and a pain in the ass. His loyalties were unclear and he was good at manipulating people. Having to work with him was both a curse and a blessing. On one hand he could be of great help with his intelligence on the other hand, he was still impossible.

"Jen, no one's coming out and I'm bored," Gibbs whined.

"Then call SecNav or Vance and figure out the deal with Trent or help me go through these files. Those are your two choices, take your pick. And no you do not have any other choices."

Gibbs moaned, he did not want to do either of those things and he did not want to deal with director Jenny. He wanted the Jenny he'd gotten used to knowing lately. The Jenny who was more like she was in Paris, but he knew now that Kort was here he might not see that Jenny. "I'll handle the paperwork you can make the phone calls."

Jenny walked to the corner of the room and picked up her cell phone, dialing the familiar number. She put the phone to her ear listening to it ring until she heard the familiar voice.

"Before you chew me out I can explain Jenny," Vance said with a sigh. He figured he'd be receiving this phone call soon; he just was not looking forward to it. He knew she hated Kort and that she'd be less than pleased to have him working with her.

"It better be a damn good reason Leon."

"Is there any other type of reason?"

"Yes there is, now give me this so call damn good reason."

"Sheesh have some patience Jenny. Gibbs must be really rubbing off on you."

"Funny Leon, now spit it out. You're clearly trying to avoid telling me what's going on."

"Well the level of urgency has increased a bit so Kort has come over there to divide and conquer as he likes to call it. He's going to lead who's ever in charge over there away and kill him. We have agents here to take down the mafia members who are trying to kill off NCIS agents. You and Gibbs will have the leftovers. Kort should be gone within a few days."

"What the hell happened?" Jenny hissed. She was not pleased she hadn't been told what was going on. She knew she wasn't director anymore and didn't need sitreps but it would've been nice to know about the change in urgency that was putting NCIS in danger. Especially when those NCIS agents were people she cared deeply about.

"Everything is fine Jenny," Vance said trying to calm the inevitable screaming that was about to come.

"Why weren't we told? This involves us too! I know I'm not director anymore, but don't you think I deserve to know what's going on? We don't keep secrets anymore Vance we agreed on that." Gibbs looked up from the file he was reading to see a very angry Jenny ranting into her cell phone. She spoke in her infamous director tone and her face was taking on a reddish tone. She was the definition of doppelganger at the moment. He didn't know Vance had said, but he knew it wasn't something he probably wouldn't want to hear either.

"I know Jenny, I should've told you sooner. But I've had a lot to deal with and this hasn't been easy. All you need to know is some of the mafia members made an appearance in DC the other day and has been mailing threats and making appearances. They're quite tricky, but they've been leaving a trail and we're trying to follow it. The rest is need to know. You know what it's like so could you please cut me some slack? Everything will be under control as long as you hold down your end. Now I've got to go but call me later with updates."

"I understand Vance, but if anything changes could you please let me know?" Jenny said, now calmer, "These agents, especially the MCRT, mean a lot to me. I'd like to know that they're okay. We'll hold down our end and make sure Kort holds his down too."

"I will Jenny, I promise."

"That's all I ask. Bye Vance." Jenny ended the call and stuck her phone in her pocket. Gibbs looked up expectantly and she blew out a long sigh. It was hard to be on the other side. To some extent she was used to being on the needing to know side and often brushed off inquires by saying need to know. But now that she was on the receiving end of the need to know, she realized how annoying it was. She wanted answers and she wanted them now. It seemed strange that he would send Kort here and not an NCIS agent. She didn't know what he was hiding and how big it was but she was going to find out.

"What's going on Jen?" Gibbs finally asked, after giving her some time to cool off. He did not want to be on the receiving side of her anger, he liked sleeping in the bed with her not next to the bed.

"I know you have a rule against apologies, but I've been pretty good at breaking that one lately so I'm going to break it again. I'm sorry for every time I ever told you need to know when you inquired about something, it's really quite obnoxious to be told that."

"You do what you gotta do Jen. Now please tell me what's going on?"

"The mafia has made their big American appearance by making threats. Your team is on the investigation."

"The rest is need to know?"

"Yep, everybody's fine by the way." Gibbs walked over and wrapped her in a hug; he could tell she needed it. He imagined how hard it must've felt to feel helpless, after being in a position with so much power. She hugged him back tightly and he felt her smile into his shoulder. They stayed like that for a long time until they were rudely interrupted.

"I always heard there was something between you two, I guess now we know it's true." Kort said ruining everything.

"Did you actually do anything productive Kort?"

"Stole copies of their personnel files and put them on this flash drive, made a contact for you inside the mafia, and sent a couple of them on a wild goose chase to France where I can kill them. Your welcome."

"That's…," Jenny stammered, "quite impressive. Thank you Kort," she said nodding her head in his direction.

"There a catch?" Gibbs asked bluntly.

"And why would you assume that Gibbs?"

"Always a catch with you."

"All you have to do is call my boss and tell him I served out my punishment then I can go kill those guys and go back to my real job."

"Punishment?" Jenny asked raising an eyebrow at him. Gibbs and Kort both had identical smirks on their faces that made her wonder just how much time the two spent together in her abscense.

"Yeah I may have done something that got me in trouble-"

"Shocking," Gibbs said cutting him off.

"And my punishment was to play nicely with NCIS and help with this mission. Now call my boss so I can get out of her and you can go back to do whatever the hell you were doing."

"Fine," Jenny muttered, picking up her phone and dialing the number. She made the phone call short and sweet before hanging up.

"You can go Kort," she said glad for him to be gone.

"What no goodbye? Didn't your mother teach you any manners Jen-ni-fer?" Kort asked drawing out the pronunciation of her name she hated.

"Goodbye Kort." And with that Kort left for France to go piss off somebody new. There was something about that man that made her detest him so much she couldn't stand him.

"Chi era quell'uomo antipatico?" Dante asked rejoining the couple. He had heard Americans were obnoxious, but he had never believed it based on his previous experience. Now he understood why people said it. He was damn good at getting the intel, but he was a pain in the ass.

"Trent Kort and yes he's always that obnoxious." Jenny answered.

Gibbs laughed, "I'm impressed you didn't slap him."

"He's lucky I forgot I could've slapped him now that I'm not director anymore." Gibbs and Dante both laughed, but she was being dead serious. Business etiquette didn't matter when the whole world thought you were dead.

"Direttore di che cosa?" Dante asked, obviously confused. He knew she and Gibbs worked for an American government, but he didn't know which one and she didn't mention she was or had been director.

"Sono stato l'ex direttore di NCIS fino a quando ho presumibilmente morto, ma non ho davvero morire Ho appena se ne andò e tornò indietro." Jenny explained to an even more confused looking Dante.

"English Jen."

"Learn the language Jethro. I said, 'I was the former director of NCIS until I supposedly died but I didn't really die I just went away and came back.'"

"I'm getting there, give me some time."

"Did you um say you um died?" Dante asked struggling for the right words.

"Yeah but I didn't really."

"She just let us think she did for three years." Gibbs added.

"Um okay…Well I'll let you crazy Americans go now," Dante said before making a fast exit. The couple shared, it'd probably be awhile before they saw Dante again.

"We sure have a way of clearing a room," Jenny said laughing.

"The only one I need in a room is you."

**A/N: Writer's block is killing me but I'll try to write sooner!**


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: I would like to blame the lack of updates on my busy schedule, but in reality I've been having wicked writers block to where to go next. As per usual I drew this out to long and now I'm left with no clue where to go next. But anyways thanks for your patience!**

Jenny woke up two days later to her cell phone ringing obnoxiously next to her. Groaning she picked it up and answered. It was way too early for somebody to be calling her and if it wasn't a life or death matter she was definitely going to be pissed.

"Yeah Shepard," she answered sleepily.

"Sorry to bother you Shepard but we have an emergency situation," SecNav explained. Jenny shot up straight, startling Gibbs next to her. Suddenly she was very awake as her heart rate sped up, waiting for the bad news to come. She knew there was a reason she'd hadn't been able to shake the bad feeling she had.

"What's wrong?" she demanded the nervous-ness in her voice showing.

"Well on the plus side Bonaventura and his right hand men are dead. On the downside Vance has been shot and is critically wounded. I want you to come back to DC and be acting director while he recovers. I spoke with Trent yesterday and he took out the men who he was responsible for and we think we've got most of the mafia dealt with. However I want Gibbs and your contact Trent spoke of to stay there just to make sure. I booked your flight for tomorrow morning. I'm really sorry to do this to you Jen." Jenny sighed, somehow the one thing she had always wanted all those years ago was now the one thing she didn't want. She didn't want to leave, Rome was a beautiful city and she loved spending time with Jethro.

Jethro. How was she going to tell him she had to go back to the states? She knew he would understand that work is important, but she always knew he'd probably feel like she was abandoning him again. And she did not want another repeat of Paris.

"Jennifer? You still there?" SecNav asked impatiently.

"Yes sorry sir. That'll be fine."

"Questions?"

"No sir, I promise you I'll do a good job."

"I have total faith in you Jennifer." At least somebody did, because at this moment she certainly didn't.

"Thank you sir."

"Goodbye and good luck Jennifer."

"Goodbye sir." She said as she hung up her phone and threw it down. Getting up she started to pace nervously, her thoughts racing. Jethro looked up, a worried expression on his face, but he said nothing. He knew right now she needed a moment so he gave it to her, instead opting to watch her pace nervously. She looked upset, nervous, and maybe a lit bit scared. When she walked straight into the dresser, nailing her knee and cursing loudly he decided it was time to intervene. He got up slowly and walked behind her, sliding his arms around her waist and pressing a kiss to her forehead. He could feel how tense she was and he knew this wasn't a good sign.

"You okay Jen?"

"No," she responded in a quiet, hushed voice.

"What's wrong?"

"Vance got shot and badly wounded and I need to go back to DC and be acting director and I really don't want to leave Rome and you because I love you and I always have and always will and I don't want you to think I'm leaving you for good because I'm not and I don't want a repeat of Paris," she said in one long jumbled sentence. She hadn't meant to say all that or say it so fast but it all came flying out of her mouth before she could put a filter on it.

"Wow if you kept going you'd give Abby a run for her money." The joke made her smile and she relaxed a bit. He sat down on the bed and pulled her down onto his lap where they sat in silence for a few moments before he started speaking again.

"It's going to be okay Jen, I promise."

"No its not. I don't want to be director anymore and I don't want to leave you. SecNav thinks we killed off most of the mafia but he wants you and Dante to stick around to make sure."

"Okay so how about I go in there right now shoot anyone who might be there and then I can go back with you."

Jenny laughed a bit, "Somehow I don't think SecNav will go for that."

"Since when do I give a damn about what SecNav thinks?"

"A better question would be since when do you give a damn about what anyone thinks?"

"I happen to care what you think thank you very much." He wasn't quite sure when suddenly he started caring what she thought but her opinions were becoming more and more important to him. At first it was the little things: wearing the shirt she loved on him, asking her what she wanted for dinner instead of picking it out, doing what she wanted. And it continued on from there. He wanted their relationship to work this time and failure just wasn't an option. Although he would like to think their failed relationship in Paris was all her fault he knew damned well it wasn't. He hadn't been over Shannon at that point and he hadn't been open with her about Shannon either. He also knew telling her about Shannon would've impacted their relationship, but he'd never admit that.

"Yeah now you do, but you didn't when I was director."

"Things were different then." If there was one consistent factor in their lives it was that things were always changing. Sometimes it was good, at least their jobs were never boring, but sometimes it was bad. A little predictability never hurt anyone, it was comforting in a way.

"Do you think we're going to be okay Jethro?"

"I know we're gonna be okay Jen." And as he kissed her senseless she knew everything was going to be okay. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but everything would be okay because they were together. And together they were unstoppable.

**THE END**

**A/N: This is kind of a lame ending but I had no idea how to end it so yeah. I'm thinking of doing a squeal but I kind of suck at actually acting on my ideas so we'll see. Let me know what you think?**


End file.
